WASHINGTON - With the 2013 President’s Cup set for a Phil Mickelson 3-iron outside Columbus — Jack’s course at Muirfield Village in Dublin, Ohio — the worlds of hockey and golf are going to collide. For one puck-drop, at least.

Jack Nicklaus, the greatest player to ever don a green jacket or drag a cleat across a lushly-manicured patch of grass (Chi Chi Rodriguez called him “A legend in his spare time”), will perform the ceremonial puck drop before Friday’s Calgary Flames-Blue Jackets game at Nationwide Arena, the seasonal home opener for Columbus.

Meaning new Flames captain Mark Giordano will be in on the action.

“Oh my God, yeah,” gushes Giordano, asked if he was a Golden Bear fan. “It’ll be awesome, man. I’d forgotten about it and then I read about it again last week and got excited all over again.

“That … now that is a great experience. So cool.

“I’m a big golf nut. He may be a little out of my era but he’s … well, he’s Jack Nicklaus. I know what he’s meant to the game. All the majors he’s won. I’m sorta in the Tiger era, right? And he’s the guy Tiger’s always chasing. When you compare great golfers, they’re always compared to Jack Nicklaus.

“I just hope someone snaps a photo of it and gets it to me somehow.”

When legends the stature of the Golden Bear are concerned, even pro athletes tend to get positively schoolboyish.

“I have a couple of buddies back home in Toronto who are going to be pretty envious, let me tell you. One of them” — Darren Godeen — “is a golf pro (at Humber Valley). I’ve been playing golf with him every Saturday for the last 10, 15 years. He’s a bit older than me, so he’ll be pretty jealous.”

A mischievous grin crosses Giordano’s face.

“Which reminds me: I’ve got text him and let him know.”

MAN ON A MISSION

Operating on a line with Troy Brouwer and Brooks Laich, Mikhail Grabovski roared out of the gate as a Washington Capital, piling up four points, including the first hat-trick of his NHL career, in the Caps’ 6-4 curtain-raising loss at the United Center in Chicago on Tuesday.

Bought out of his contract by the Toronto Maple Leafs, on the eve of his wedding, no less, a clearly frustrated Grabovski signed with Washington in the off-season at one year, $3 million.

Might turn out to be a steal of a deal.

Grabovski’s opinion on current Leafs’ boss Randy Carlyle couldn’t have been more clear when he told TSN: “I play in the (explative) Russian KHL, I make lots of (explative) points and what’s going to happen? He make me (explative) play on the fourth line and he put me in the playoffs on the fourth line and third line again. I don’t feel any support from this (explative) idiot”.

In 48 games last season, he managed just 16 points.

“He’s here and a fresh start’s never a bad thing,” says Flames centreman Matt Stajan. “He’s a guy who really works hard and the way he is when something like this happens he’s going to want to prove a lot of people wrong.

“He goes after it. He’s not someone who’s content to just take a back seat. He’s got all the talent in the world. He’s fast. Plays hard. Wants the puck. He’s really learned how to be responsible from the time I was there in Toronto. I think he’s a well-rounded player now.

“Sometimes guys get labelled a certain way and sometimes not for the right reasons. That’s just the way it is. You’re never going to change it. Unfortunately, perception in the hockey world has an effect on a lot of things. As players, we can focus on that. You just gotta come to the rink, do your thing and work hard.”

Another ex-Leaf and former Grabovski teammate Lee Stempniak isn’t surprised to see the forward motivated.

“No. Not at all. It’s a few years ago now, but he’s a great skater,” Stempniak said. “That’s what you want out there: A guy who wants the puck, takes charge and isn’t afraid to make plays.

“When I was there, Ron Wilson was the coach and they got along really well. Grabbo was a go-to guy there, someone Ron really trusted. I don’t really know what happened the last year or two, with (Randy) Carlyle. I know he liked living in Toronto, had a young family. When I was there it seemed like a really good fit for him.

“Certainly sometimes a change of scenery is good for someone. It looks like it’s paid off him for him, put in more offensive situations in a more offensive-minded team.

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